RAIL TRANSPORT ABROAD

New South Wales to invest in rail maintenance facilities

The New South Wales (NSW) government in Australia has announced a plan to invest $60m to set up eight maintenance 'centres of excellence' for the state's rail network.

The investment is part of a programme to modernise NSW rail authority RailCorp's outdated maintenance practices.

According to the NSW government, the investment comes as it prepares for two new rail operators to join the network, Sydney Trains and NSW Trains, on 1 July 2013.

Construction on the first centre of excellence at Blacktown has already started, while others will be built at Sydenham, Hornsby, Strathfield, Glenfield, the Sydney CBD, Gosford and Wollongong.

A further four smaller satellite centres will also be set up at Sutherland, Hamilton, Lawson and Granville to rectify problems on the rail network. The state's three-year programme to improve maintenance and build centres of excellence to consolidate 130 disparate depots has been fast tracked to two years.

NSW Minister for Transport Gladys Berejiklian said that maintenance staff and inventory have been spread across 130 locations and there has been a fragmented and duplicated response to maintenance issues when compared to the Melbourne Metro, which has just eight main depots.

"Major track work is scheduled almost every weekend and it is also not unusual for staff to work on the track for only three hours of an eight hour shift. This all needs to change and there needs to be better coordination," Berejiklian said.

According to the government, the new centres of excellence will bring together the three major maintenance regulations, electrics, civil and signals.

"Maintenance of the rail network currently costs $1.1 billion a year; we need to be smarter about the way we do things and we need to eliminate the duplication, waste and lack of coordination that exists," Berejiklian added.

California High-Speed Rail Authority to upgrade rail corridor

California High-Speed Rail Authority board member Jim Hartnett said that the MoU will help to combine high-speed rail with regional and state-wide rail system.High-speed rail is designed to bring the regions of California together while providing all important benefits at the local level.Work under the project will involve upgrading the tracks, adding safety features and preparing the route to run future high-speed rail services.

The partnership between Caltrain and high-speed rail will improve rail traffic for one of the most important economic and innovative regions in our country.CHSRA CEO Jeff Morales said: "The blended system will allow existing rail systems to benefit from and eventually merge with the high-speed rail programme, while also benefitting Bay Area commuters and all Californians in the near future."

Caltrain provides rail service from San Francisco to San Jose and further passenger services to Gilroy, transporting over 50,000 riders per week.The total cost of electrifying and modernising the entire Caltrain system is $1.45bn, with the project expected to be completed by 2019.

An investment of $705m has been allocated to the project from Proposition 1A funds, which is being matched by a combination of federal, regional and local funding sources.The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) in the US has approved a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (JPB) to improve the rail corridor between San Francisco and San Jose in California, US.

Work under the project will involve upgrading the tracks, adding safety features and preparing the route to run future high-speed rail services.

The MoU also outlines a $ 750m modernisation plan to upgrade Caltrain's existing rail lines, electrify the rail corridor, install the advanced signalling system and acquire new electrified rail vehicles.

The modernisation programme is expected to cut Caltrain's operating costs by half and reduce the rail system's greenhouse gas emissions by more than 90%.

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